Crunchy popcorn, roasted peanuts, chocolate candies and ooey-gooey marshmallows make this Popcorn Cake chewy and full of sweet and salty crunch.

A cake made out of popcorn molded into a bundt shaped cake on a large white serving platter.

Sweet, Simple, Awesome

This ooey-gooey Popcorn Cake is full of crunchy popcorn, salty roasted peanuts, sweet chocolaty M&Ms and sticky, yummy marshmallows. If you’re looking for a fun sweet treat to easily make and successfully serve, look no further. Kids and adults all love it!

A piece of popcorn peanut cake on a small white plate with a gold toned fork.

A Family Favorite

I come from a family of great cooks and we have a whole cookbook full of just our family’s favorite recipes that I love sharing with y’all. This popcorn cake is one those recipes. My mom made this cake so many times when we were growing up for birthday parties, school events or just a fun weekend treat.

A cake made out of popcorn and M&Ms molded into a bundt shaped cake on a large white cake platter.

Watch Me Make Popcorn Cake

Step into the kitchen with me to make this chewy, gooey no-bake popcorn cake!

Sweet and Salty Popcorn Cake

Have you ever thrown a few M&M’s into your popcorn while snacking on it? Well, if not, it’s a must try. The sweet and salty combo of popcorn and M&M’s is out of this world. This cake takes my favorite combo over the top with the addition of melted marshmallows and salty peanuts for added crunch. Oh my yum!

It’s chewy, gooey and full of sweet and salty crunch. It’s one of those cakes that keeps you coming back for more. No baking required and this fun and festive cake can be pulled together in no time!

A cake made out of popcorn molded into a bundt shaped cake on a large white cake platter. There is a slice cut out of the cake.

How to Make Stovetop Popcorn

Check out my Basics series to learn how to make popcorn on the stovetop that pops up fluffy and crunchy every time!

Stovetop Popcorn

What Do I Need to Make a Peanut Popcorn Cake?

  • Popcorn (8 cups of popped popcorn is about 2 bags of microwave popcorn or 1/2 cup of popped popcorn kernels)
  • Unsalted butter
  • Miniature marshmallows
  • Dry roasted peanuts
  • M&M’s candies
  • Bundt cake pan
  • Nonstick cooking spray
Ingredients for peanut popcorn cake in small glass dishes on a white marble counter.

How to Make Popcorn Cake

  • Generously spray a bundt pan with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
  • Be careful to remove all unpopped kernels from the popped popcorn. Place the popped popcorn in a large mixing bowl.
  • In a medium saucepan over low heat, melt the butter and marshmallows until smooth. Immediately pour over popcorn and gently toss until all popcorn is coated. Add the peanuts and M&M’s.
  • Gently stir until well distributed throughout the popcorn.
Peanut popcorn and M&M mix in a large glass bowl.
  • Press the popcorn mixture evenly into the prepared bundt pan.
Peanut popcorn mix pressed into a dark bundt pan.
  • Let set for about 10 minutes before running a table knife around the edges and inverting onto a serving plate. Let set for at least another 10 minutes before cutting into slices with a sharp knife.
  • This cake is best served within 3 days of making. Store leftovers, covered tightly with plastic wrap or in an airtight container, at room temperature for up to three days.
  • This recipe could also be made into popcorn balls or bars. You can make it even more festive by coordinating the colors of the M&M’s with the theme of your party or holiday.
A cake made out of popcorn molded into a bundt shaped cake on a large white cake platter.

More of My Favorite No-Bake Recipes

From nutritious energy bites and hearty granola to dreamy and decadent icebox pies, my Favorite No-Bake Recipes leave nothing out but the oven. Skip the heat and enjoy these delicious no-bake eats!

No bake peanut butter pie, 5-ingredient granola bars, overnight oats bars, muddy buddy bites.

If you make this Popcorn Cake and post a pic to social, be sure to tag me on Instagram @thebakermama so I can see! 😍 I just love seeing how inspired and creative y’all get with the recipes and ideas I share. Enjoy!

xoxo,

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A cake made out of popcorn molded into a bundt shaped cake on a large white serving platter. There is a slice cut out of the cake.

Popcorn Cake

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 3.5 from 2 reviews
  • Author: Maegan – The BakerMama
  • Prep Time: 15 mins
  • Cook Time: 5 mins
  • Total Time: 20 mins
  • Yield: 15
  • Category: Dessert

Description

This Popcorn Cake is chewy, gooey and full of sweet and salty crunch.


Ingredients

  • 8 cups popped popcorn
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
  • 2 (10 ounce) packages miniature marshmallows
  • 3/4 cup dry roasted peanuts, optional
  • 1 and 1/4 cups M&M’s candies

Instructions

  1. Generously spray a bundt pan with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
  2. Be careful to remove all unpopped kernels from the popped popcorn. Place the popped popcorn in a large mixing bowl.
  3. In a medium saucepan over low heat, melt the butter and marshmallows until smooth. Immediately pour over the popcorn and gently toss until all popcorn is coated.
  4. Gently stir in the peanuts and M&M’s until well distributed throughout the popcorn.
  5. Press the popcorn mixture evenly into the prepared bundt pan. Let set for about 10 minutes before running a table knife around the edges and inverting onto a serving plate. Let set for at least another 10 minutes before cutting into slices with a sharp knife.

Notes

8 cups of popped popcorn is about 2 bags of microwave popcorn or 1/2 cup of popped popcorn kernels.

This cake is best served within 3 days of making. Store leftovers, covered tightly with plastic wrap or in an airtight container, at room temperature for up to three days.

Recipe could also be made into popcorn balls or bars. You can make it even more festive by coordinating the colors of the M&M’s with the theme of your party or holiday.

About The BakerMama

Maegan is the author of her best-selling Beautiful Boards, Spectacular Spreads and Brilliant Bites cookbooks. She started blogging in 2012 and features hundreds of original recipes on The BakerMama. She truly enjoys sharing her easy, family-friendly recipes, creative meal ideas, food board creations, and entertaining spreads to encourage others to get in the kitchen and make something memorable for their loved ones to enjoy together. Learn More

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Comments

  1. You need 5 QUARTS of popcorn not 8 cups! This recipe is now a marshmallow cake not a popcorn cake! Still good but half the size it should be.






    1. Hi Cynthia! I’ve made this cake tons of times and 8 cups of popcorn is accurate. It’s equal to about 2 bags of popped microwave popcorn or about 1/2 cup of popcorn kernels popped. I hope this helps and that you get to enjoy it soon!

  2. This failed for me big time. It seemed too gooey, so I didn’t even use all the marshmallow mixture, but the entire thing seemed too “wet” and it basically compressed down into the pan and looked awful. The popcorn tasted stale the same night. I used a silicone bundt pan, which made it easy to remove the cake…I can’t imagine that the was the problem. I have no idea, but sad I wasted all those M&Ms!

    1. Hi Sarah! Oh no, I’m so sorry to hear that. Did you follow all of the ingredient measurements and instructions exactly? It sounds like you might not have had enough popcorn in there. Was the popcorn popped fresh? Or possibly too much butter? It should be gooey, but not wet. I hope you get to try it again soon with great success because it’s such a great treat!

  3. Love this. Used to make it for my kids often. One quick hint is to freeze the M&M’s before stirring in so they do not melt!






  4. We added a cup of chopped pretzels and some cashews. Also, seemed too gooey so we added another 4 cups popcorn. The real test is t)3 football game tomorrow night.

  5. This is so cute! Marshmallow popcorn was a staple in my house growing up! Can’t go wrong with marshmallow and peanut M&Ms! 🙂